AI Translation, waiting for personal review and editing. What Spoils Fencing Rules? 🤔 A Closer Look at Fencing Conventions from the 15th Century to Modern HEMA Tournaments. An in-depth analysis for everyone interested in the history and purpose of HEMA tournament rules. PDF version of the article This article originally started as a social media status update. However, the situation got slightly out of hand when I began gathering relevant citations.

The following text deals with the theory of fencing from a modern point of view and is primarily intended for referees, fencing coaches but also fencers who need to think about fencing more analytically. Ultimately, however, I find it useful for all advanced swordsmen to be familiar with the following terms and concepts, which could also help to clarify and improve public debate. The concepts and terms used in the article are ruleset agnostic and do not imply any particular refereeing style required. All systems either with priority or “after-blow” are compatible.